Fairy Tale ver Vongola Decimo Edition
by The Yaoi Goddess
Summary: And that was how Sawada Tsunayoshi, Crown Prince of the Sky Kingdom, nineteen years of age, currently single, unwed and a virgin, got stuck in a dilapidated castle with the Millefiore, the Varia, his Cloud and Mist Guardians and Reborn.
1. A Prelude to Problems

**Take it easy and please tell me if there are any mistakes.  
Disclaimer: Akira Amano, it's all yours. All yours**_**.**_

I'm Single, Thanks for Asking

Centuries ago, the Mafia World existed. Were you to be whisked away to this unknown land strangely parallel to ours, you must certainly hear me out. In the Mafia World, maps are as no-good as No-Good Tsuna, Crown Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi of the Sky Kingdom in the Vongola Va –

Hold it.

In the Mafia World, maps are no-good. Were you to ask for a map from a stranger (Yes, that one. No, no. To your left. The stranger who won't stop going "Kufufu…" beside the suspicious Pineapple N' Chocolate Stand. Yes, that one.) , said stranger would simply chuck a scroll of parchment paper with two words. The two words? Mafia World. See? I told you maps were useless.

Now then, let's talk about survival. Surviving is no easy task, especially if you're involved in the Mafia. And here in Mafia World, everyone's a Mafioso. (Yes, everyone. Including that stupid cow munching on grapes and to your left and that handsome blond galloping away on his enchanting white horse across the road.) Then again, surviving will be much easier if you are a Mafioso, and a good one at that.

And to be a Mafioso, you need to have the Mafioso Knowledge.

The Vongola Valleys. Within the Vongola Valleys lie seven kingdoms.

You all know the names of the seven kingdoms and who governs them, do you not? Why don't we save ourselves from the trouble?

Wait, what was that? You don't? My, my, just where in the parallel worlds did you come from? Very well, it can't be helped then.

The Sky Kingdom – the palace of this kingdom is located in the heart of Vongola Valleys. The palace is open to all and the borders of the Sky Kingdom are the very borders of the Vongola Valleys that separate it form the rest of the Mafia World, embracing everything else from within. This is the only kingdom accessible to and from all the other kingdoms. The King of this kingdom is the constantly missing-in-action Sawada Iemitsu. His loving wife is the ditzy Queen, Sawada Nana. The only prince of the Kingdom is Crown Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi. Believe it or not, Crown Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi runs the kingdom on luck and, occasionally, help from his friends as he takes after his ditzy mother. Having no skill whatsoever, the people branded him as No-Good Tsuna. He isn't as useless as he sounds though. Because of his adorable appearance, calm, pacifying aura and habit of warming up to people and accepting them despite their past and their differences, the Sky Citizens gave him a second nickname – Prince of the Embracing Sky. The Sky Kingdom rulers are tasked to keep the harmony of the Vongola Valleys intact.

The Storm Kingdom – the Storm Kingdom is the kingdom closest to the Sky. The Storm is a day and a half's horse ride away from the Sky and the path connecting the two kingdoms is clear as glass and free of any traps. That is why Crown Prince Gokudera Hayato of the Smokin' Bomb, can come to the Sky and fawn over his precious Tenth-generation boss like the loyal right-hand man that he is. This is much to the disdain of the one who really keeps the kingdom alive, Princess Bianchi of the Poison Scorpion. Prince Gokudera might well be the smartest in all of Vongola Valleys and has a transforming cat by the name of Uri he cannot control but Princess Bianchi has the art of Poison Cooking mastered. Skilled she is, for she can will Poison Cooking into existence and make Gingerbreads that say "How naïve, how very naïve" every couple of minutes and goo-colored Cappuccinos. The Storm Kingdom is in charge of growing fruits, vegetables, and mushrooms to be used in the Vongola Festivals.

The Cloud Kingdom – situated farthest from the rest of the kingdoms, all the routes leading to the Cloud have been either closed or blocked off by the tyrant of a leader himself. The gate which closes-off this kingdom from that of the Sky's is opened at announced dates. Visitors to the Cloud must send letters stating the reason for their visit beforehand. They must then wait for the validation to their visit. Cloud Citizens, on the other hand, must past written reports week after week on their current 'statuses' to their oppressor. This systematic and orderly method keeps the iron-fisted ruler of the kingdom at his desk, busy with paperwork. The iron-fisted ruler is Crown Prince Hibari Kyouya, Prince of the Drifting Clouds of Solitude to the commoners for his lone-wolf tendencies to not act in a group despite having created one himself. The Discipline Committee, composed of Prefects who enforce discipline, hence the name, thru violence, is led by its Vice-Chairman Kusakabe Tetsuya. Whenever Prince Hibari is unable to 'bite to death' those who violate rules due to paperwork, the Discipline Committee covers for him. His palace, fondly called Namimori, is where he lets loose the small animals he has a soft spot for. The Cloud Kingdom's self-appointed duty is to enforce discipline throughout the whole of Vongola as Hibari deploys his Prefects to the kingdoms that 'need' them to ensure that all the citizens are well-disciplined and not crowding.

The Sun Kingdom – the smallest albeit liveliest kingdom is led by the equally lively Crown Prince Sasagawa Ryohei, whose hobby is taking things TO THE EXTREME. This extreme hobby of his earned him the honor of being The Extreme Prince. He almost always misunderstands the rules Sawada Tsunayoshi implements and this sets the Sun Citizens and the Sun Kingdom itself into a whirlpool of confusion. His dearly beloved sister is Princess Sasagawa Kyoko. The Sun Kingdom is responsible for training and developing individuals who have the potential to become strong allies of the Vongola. The Extreme Prince personally leads the training sessions with his Kangaryuu.

The Mist Kingdom – this kingdom is shrouded in mystery and widely infamous for having only six occupants. The kingdom's ruler, Crown Prince Rokudo Mukuro is an ex-convict Prince Tsunayoshi bailed out of Vendicare prison capable of possessing human and animal bodies. His animal of choice, however, is an owl. Having been through six hells and back, Prince Mukuro can conjure illusions he use to his advantage. The Mist Palace, if you could call it that, since it looks more like an old and abandoned building and less like a palace, is called Kokuyo. Information-gathering is entrusted to the Mist Occupants as they are also adept at infiltrating enemy bases.

The Thunder Kingdom – the fame of this kingdom with the most advanced technology is arguably at par with that of the Mists's. Bathing in splendor and shining, sparkling lights, the Thunder Kingdom truly is a sight to behold after the sun sets as its streets are often the venue for the Vongola Outdoor Festivals. Crown Prince Lambo hails from the Bovino Backwoods, famous for its high-quality cows. Prince Lambo grew up thinking he himself was a cow, that is, until King Iemitsu saw his potential and invited him to the Vongola Valleys. It is the Thunder Kingdom's job to build the bridges, roads and borders of Vongola Valleys and monitor the construction.

The Rain Kingdom – this tranquil kingdom has a somewhat lazy feel to it. Rain Citizens are cheerful and laid-back, much like Crown Prince Yamamoto Takeshi. A baseball-player turned swordsman, Prince Yamamoto is son to King Yamamoto Tsuyoshi. Rain Citizens use the ingredients brought in from the Storm Kingdom to cook for the Vongola Festivals.

–––––

The Vongola Guardians were gathered in the Sky Palace they considered the Vongola Mansion to celebrate, in private, Crown Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi's nineteenth birthday.

And that is where our fairy tale begins.

–––––

"…appreciate all your efforts…such greatness! ...running the kingdom…can't compare to your…amazing…"

His nineteenth birthday. It was always the same. Year after year.

But that is about to change.

Dim the lights, here comes the Vongola Chief Advisor Reborn.

He appeared from one of the many grand glass doors you can't see through in the pointlessly large hall they used to celebrate special occasions.

"Tsuna."  
"Yes, Reborn?" Said prince looked up.  
"We have a problem."  
"But…I thought Hibari-san takes care of all the problems?"

At the mention of his name, Hibari opened his eyes.

"It's not that kind of problem."

Tsuna turned to his babbling companion.

"Gokudera-kun!"  
"Yes, Tenth?" Gokudare shot up, straighter than an arrow.  
"I thought I told you to stop blowing up Bianchi's portraits in the Gallery!"  
"The Tenth's orders are absolute! I did nothing of the sort!"

Tsuna paused to think, and so did Reborn. The latter was torn between telling his student now, to get the opinion of the Guardians, or later, so they could discuss it in private.

"Mukuro!"  
"Yes, Tsunayoshi?"  
"You did something perverted and were caught again, weren't you?"  
"Kufufu, but I'd only do something perverted with you, Tsunayoshi."  
"T-that wasn't – I meant…N-n-no…I mean – !"

The death threats pouring from Gokudera's mouth was making it known to all that Gokudera's vocabulary was so colorful, it puts the rainbow to shame. Yamamoto laughed nervously and a vein popped on the side of Hibari's forehead.

Gokudera lit his dynamites. There were no portraits of Bianchi around so it should be fine, right? It's not like he's using his superior intelligence to find a way around his Tenth's order…

_BANG!_

"Silence, all of you!" Reborn demanded attention. "And Gokudera, put away those dynamites!"

The explosions ceased. Mukuro halted to a stop, accusing eyes fixated on the swordsman who boldly dared to snatch his flustered Tsunayoshi from his arms. Hibari stopped chasing Mukuro and Lambo, sensing the forming gravity of whatever Reborn was about to say, devoured all the food on his platter, choking and gagging in the process, before turning his attention to Reborn. Ryohei shouted, "ATTENTION TO THE EXTREME!" before sitting down on his chair TO THE EXTREME and placing his fists on the long mahogany table TO THE EXTREME. Yamomoto plopped down next to Ryohei, placing Tsuna on his lap and earning four jealous glares.

"Tsuna," Reborn snapped. "How old are you?"

Tsuna looked at the striking 19-layer orange cake adorned with orange frosting and orange sprinkles. Yamamoto carried him on his shoulders as the cake was by far taller than him. His name was written in orange and the topmost layer held nineteen orange tunas in the act of leaping that served as birthday candles. He had to wonder why they didn't paint the whole palace orange for the occasion.

"Um…nineteen…"Tsuna's voice cracked. Oh, intuition.  
"You're still single, aren't you?"

Semes, do your stuff. Cue carnivorous smirk and sheepish right-hand man grin. The center of attention himself received a pat to his back with a, "That's okay, Tsuna!". Ryohei just had to shout, "SINGLE TO THE EXTREME!" much to Tsuna's further embarrassment. Lambo choked on the food he was secretly eating. A certain illusionist waited for the stutters and laughter to die down before he spoke.

"If you only had allowed me to take you a few years prior, you wouldn't be single now. Kufufu."

Mukuro might be perverted but he was wise enough to break into a sprint as Gokudera fainted and Tsuna ran after him with one of the many and capable-of-cutting-through-flesh knives placed on the dining table. Knowing that he was at a disadvantage with his lack of stamina, Tsuna opted for throwing the knife at the fleeing Mukuro who, for the love of knife-throwing princes, was hit with the blunt end across the right cheek.

Gokudera woke up from the _thump_ Mukuro's limp body made as it fell limp to the floor. He zoomed past the other on looking Guardians to congratulate his Tenth while he jumped up and down Mukuro's prone body. Hibari stayed in his corner, smirking at the turn of events.

The faintest trace of amusement made the depths of Reborn's eyes twinkle for a brief moment before vanishing completely.

Mukuro regained his consciousness when the incessant stomping on his back finally stopped. He knew who was going _stomp-_stomp on his back. With both feet. At the same time. He knew, oh yes, he did.

The Guardians turned to their Advisor.

"I'm single, Reborn. Thanks for asking."

"Reborn? What's wrong? What's the problem?"  
"That's the problem."

**OMAKE** – Of Knife-Throwing Princes

"Vongola-peasant, this is how you should throw a knife if you aren't planning on attaching wires."  
"Ah. Bel-sempai can throw knives without the strings."

Belphigor stepped behind Tsuna as he handed him one of his knives.

"Fran, a little to the left."  
"But, Bel-sempai, he won't learn anything if the target gets hit on purpose."  
"Shut up and move to your left, Froggy."  
"Alright, Bel-sempai."

Tsuna was relieved when Belphigor agreed to teach him to throw knives but was it normal to use your own teammates for target material during practice?

"Froggy! Stay still."  
"But Bel-sempai…"  
"Stay still, Froggy."  
"Alright Bel-sempai."

Fran stood a few meters away from them, back facing the prince and the boss who were about to back-stab him. Literally.

Belphigor rested his chin on one of Tsuna's shoulder blades, their cheeks almost touching. Wrapping an arm around the smaller male's waist, Belphigor held the hand Tsuna was using to hold the blade with his free one.

"Ushishishi…Our target is the Froggy over there so if you – ack!"

Tsuna looked behind him, hoping to get any tell-tale signs that Belphigor was still around and getting none.

"I was never good at self-study sessions…" The Decimo sighs dejectedly to himself.

–––––

"You bastard! Laying your filthy hands on the Tenth like that…Unforgivable!"  
"What do you think are you doing to the prince?"

Belphigor came to the realization that he was bound by a rope with little bombs tied to it. If that wasn't bad enough, he could feel the sharp end of a trident against the back of his head, the bladed edge of a sword, a Shigure Kintoki sword, on the side of his neck and a metal tonfa pressed to his chin.

"Ushishishi… The prince is in a bad situation."

–––––

The next day, Tsuna went back to the Vaudeville owned by the Varia only to find Belphigor wrapped in bandages like a knife-throwing bed-ridden mummy in the infirmary.

So much for knife-throwing sessions.

"Ushishishi…"

I'm Single, Thanks for Asking

**Is that what you'd call an omake? It's an omake, isn't it? I really don't know what I'm doing now, do I? Thanks for reading anyway. Reviews are much loved!**

5/19/10


	2. Ah! My Father

**What in the name of fanfiction happened to my page breaks? Call the cops, I need a lawyer. No, seriously. What happened to the page breaks? You don't know too? Damn. Thanks for the reviews and alerts and favorites by the way.**

Coming Back Single and The Root of All Evil

It wasn't against the rules to be single. Heck, Crown Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi of the Sky Kingdom was obliged to stay single! If he succumbs to commitment, his dedicated fangirls and fanboys would have no one to devote their whole lives to! Then again, his thousands of yaoi fangirls would surely be more than ecstatic to marry him off to the other princes. (Why the surprised look? You're one of them, aren't you? Admit it!)

Reborn dragged his student out of the room and into their private tutoring hall by the collar, seeing as how Crown Princes Rokudo Mukuro and Hibari Kyouya seemed frighteningly too willing, not to mention determined, to solve the _problem_ at hand right there and then were it not for Tsuna's loyal, self-proclaimed right-hand man. Thank you for resisting temptation and not joining in the fun, Gokudera. Our beloved Crown Sky Prince was, on the other hand, too baffled to even thank the tutor who had just saved him from his impending doom – that being his impending loss of virginity. He was nineteen _and_ single. So? The other Crown Princes were older than him. _And_ they were also single.

"Are you listening No-Good Tsuna?"

Listening? Tsuna didn't even know that Reborn was talking to him! He gulped, remembering how often his tutor told him that a good king must be a good listener.

"N-no…"

Tsuna feared the worst. Reborn turned on his heels and promptly walked out, shutting the door behind him. Finding an empty room, he flipped open his cell phone (Yes, they have those.) and pressed a number on his speed dial.

"Ciao. Yes, it's me. I think it's finally time for you to come home, _Iemitsu._"

––––––

Tsuna had a feeling that he did not want to wake up that morning. The leaves on the tree branches swayed to the rhythm of the wind; the flower petals kissed the ground; the river whispered its secrets to the wind; and the wind swayed the leaves on the tree branches. It was a wonderful morning, but something told the Prince who was still fuzzy from sleep that something was off. Something was terribly off. Tsuna made his way to the dining room, only to find it empty. That was strange. There were no plates, no utensils, no maids, no chefs, nothing! Where were the other Crown Princes? Sure, he didn't know where Hibari and Mukuro would head off first thing in the morning but Gokudera was bound to wait for him before eating breakfast! Heck, Gokudera even insisted on _bringing the dining table to his room_ so 'Tenth wouldn't have to walk all the way down here for breakfast'! When Tsuna disagreed to that, Gokudera insisted on at least breakfast in bed. Without the dining table this time. Ryohei was probably doing some EXTREME training in the garden. Tsuna opened the refrigerator in hopes of finding Lambo. That greedy cow would probably live in a refrigerator if that meant getting to eat all of its contents. No signs of Lambo. No signs of Yamamoto either. There was no one in his line of sight.

As he ascended the flight of stairs, Tsuna's mind went into overdrive. What if one of their enemy famiglias launched an attack on the palace while he was asleep? That would explain the absence of many. It was the perfect time for an attack too. All the Princes relaxed and gathered in one palace, not expecting an ambush. Tsuna reached the pointlessly large hall they used to celebrate his birthday last night. He opened one of the grand glass double doors and took a peek inside. Tsuna was expecting the boss of the strongest rival famiglia they had, waiting, waiting for him, waiting for him so he could laugh and mock him in front of his subordinates, the subordinates he held captive. But _no, _life just had to be cruel.

––––––

" – and young gentlemanly bachelors like _us_ need to enjoy life! Young men like _us_ should not be locked up in grand castles signing paperwork! The damsels are waiting! The princesses – "

Iemitsu winked at Nana who giggled and blushed like a high schoolgirl.

" – locked up in those cursed towers are waiting for their one true love!"

Tsuna gaped at the man who stood at the podium, halfway into what may have been the speech of his life. The life Tsuna might have to cut short.

"That is why I, King of this Kingdom, King Sawada Iemitsu must make this important announcement!"

Tsuna peered through the slightly opened door to see the audience. Oh, the horror. Hibari sat farthest from the crowd, the crowd formed by the nobles and royals of the kingdoms. Why wasn't he invited? The speaker for the day was his father and the announcement was being made in _his_ castle. Tsuna's intuition got the better of him so he shut up and watched.

"Okay…Uh-huh, let's see…"

Iemitsu undid the folds on the paper Tsuna didn't notice he was holding.

"The Crown Princes of the Sun and Thunder Kingdoms are not interested in my son, so they're automatically out."

_Not interested in his son? Out?_ Curiosity was about to kill the tuna.

"The Crown Princes of the Cloud and Mist Kingdoms are…"

Iemitsu looked like he was having much difficulty reading the previously folded paper. He probably was.

"Uhh… Crown Prince Yamamoto Takeshi of the Rain Kingdom, thanks to the wonderful reviews I have read about you, I have decided to make you my son-in-law! Take my adorable son, Tsunayoshi, and shower him with your love and affection! I will personally bless your wedding! The announcement is over, let's drink to that!"

Iemitsu raised his beer. The crowd cheered and raised their wine glasses towards him. That was when he felt three piercing glares. Gokudera's was respectful and threatening at the same time. Mukuro's was covered with a fake smile. Unfortunately dear readers, there were no words to describe the hostility Hibari's glare was laced with. It was certain he'd have to bite someone to death.

To his defense, there were completely plausible reasons as to why Iemitsu would not hand over his son to any of them.

"W-well, Yamamoto does not bite people to death, he has no criminal records and he doesn't neglect his kingdom – "

He had a point but the glares intensified even more and his instinct of life-preservation kicked in.

" – is what I would like to say but sadly, everyone deserves at least one shot at every opportunity in life!"

Tsuna could see himself running from Hibari and Mukuro while being carried by Yamamoto with Gokudera by his side and Ryohei taking all of it as EXTREME training and Lambo running with them just for the heck of it.

Marriage never even crossed Tsuna mind but now that he thought of it, he realized that he'd rather have the happy-go-lucky Yamamoto as his spouse. No way was he going to willingly admit to being the female in the relationship. Wait – why weren't they marrying him off to a female anyway? Well, at least it wasn't an arranged marriage to some unknown foreigner from some unknown land.

"That is why I, King of this Kingdom, King Sawada Iemitsu must make this important announcement!"

He's heard this before…somewhere.

"My son, Tsunayoshi, is no toy! He's not a toy, _you bastards! _I am very much against him marrying you ruffians who do nothing but jump him at every opportunity you g – "

Where did that come from?

Reborn seized the microphone from Iemitsu's hands and after whispering something in his ear, started speaking.

"In lieu of His Drunken Highness – "

Iemitsu wasn't drunk. That was no drunken talk.

" – I, as Chief Advisor of the Vongola Valleys, will now give you the rules for our game."

What game?

"What game you ask? Well, it's the game almost everybody wants to play."

Vongola Wars?

"Let's just say that the prize for this game is very valuable."

Whispers of excitement erupted from the crowd.

"And the prize is…the peeping and eaves-dropping tom from between the grand double doors, Crown Sky Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi himself!"

Tsuna could not believe his ears. And he was so discreet about peeping too!

Heads turned towards his direction and he stepped forward and bowed out of reflex.

"G-good morning everyone."

Reborn coughed twice into the microphone to get everybody's attention.

"All eyes on Tsunayoshi, ladies and gentlemen! That little rabbit runs particularly fast when chased!"

_Rabbit?_ As if that wasn't disturbing enough, Tsuna noticed that Reborn, that gun-toting infant, sounded very much like a black market salesman. Tsuna waited for Reborn to start the bidding.

"Very polite, is he not? Just listen to that bashful stuttering! And he's still in his pajamas! Makes you want to take him to a bedroom and, well, _take_ him!"

Iemitsu, you failure of an innuendo-recognizing father.

"Tsuna! Papa's over here!" Said failure waved from across the room, from the front.

Those who say that money is the root of all evil are mistaken. Money is not the root of all evil. Reborn is.

And thus begins this fairytale's hero's ride through hell. Let's wish him luck, shall we? He'll need lots of it to make it back. Make it back _single_, that is!

**OMAKE** – Of Gun-Toting Infants

"No! I said no, Reborn!"  
"I don't need your permission, Tsuna."

Tsuna ran through a hallway into another hallway.

"O-of course you do! This is i-illegal!"

Tsuna ducked to avoid an attack. (Yes, an attack. What were you thinking, you fujoshi?)

"You have to take this training to improve your footwork."  
"No I don't!"

Tsuna failed to block an attack that hit him squarely at the back of one knee.

"No-Good Tsuna, you getting captured at the very beginning of the game will not provide entertainment for me."  
"But I don't want to be the prize of the game!"  
"Too bad."

Another attack sent the unwilling student spiraling down the stairs. He landed quite painfully on his rear. Tsuna limped away from the foot of the stairs and shrieked as another blow missed his face by mere centimeters.

"Tenth! Where are you Tenth?"

Apparently, his scream was loud enough to wake the previously sleeping Gokudera. Tsuna crawled into the comfort of his right-hand man's open arms, regretting his actions when Hibari and Mukuro appeared simultaneously. The former through a window left ajar and the latter out of thin air. Both scowled at the sight before their eyes. Reborn took two menacing steps forward.

"I'm not gonna let you touch my Tenth!"

The scowls deepened.

_His Tenth?_ The Tenth? Tsuna? _His?_

Gokudera lit the dynamites between his fingers as he released Tsuna.

"Go back to your kingdom and hand Tsuna over. You are interrupting a _very private session._"

What _private session?_

Said prince scurried away, limping. The limping did not go unnoticed, however, and the two beasts who go by the names of Hibari and Mukuro decided to put two and two together. Here was Gokudera, hell-bent on protecting Tsuna, whose cheeks were flushed red and was looking extremely flustered with his tousled hair and disheveled clothes. Add that to the limping and the _very private session_ Reborn did not want them to interrupt. Both of them charged.

"W-wait! Mukuro! Hibari-san! Please don't fight!"

They could listen to him moaning their names later. Oh, no, they're not planning on sharing.

"S-stop it! Please!"

––––––

How Tsuna ended up hurt all over, no one knew. And Belphigor, being the difficult prince that he is, demanded that Tsuna stay in the Varia's infirmary until he got better. Reborn gave his consent and now; Tsuna was subjected to hours of bed-ridden pain beside the also bed-ridden prince. Oh and, their beds were placed side by side in a private room because Reborn objected to _his dear student_ sharing a bed with someone else.

"You can call me Belphigor because I found out that we're both royalty. Ushishishi."

Tsuna wasn't planning on calling him 'Prince' or 'Your Highness' anyway.

"You're so ignorant Bel-sempai. Did you really think commoners were allowed here?"

At least Belphigor was _still_ being kind to him.

"Why are you injured anyway?"

Tsuna opened his mouth to speak but the illusionist called Fran beat him to it.

"Bel-sempai you ill-bred noble, you shouldn't pry."  
"Shut up, make yourself useful and prepare some juice for the royalties, Froggy."

Fran exited the room and came back seconds later with a tray holding two cups of juice.

"Bel-sempai. You are both bed-ridden."  
"Ushishishi…Yes we are."  
"Tilting the head at an angle so as to drink the juice is, hence, impossible."  
"Ushishishi…Start looking for baby bottles then."

_B-b-baby bottles?_ What could Belphigor be up to now?

Fran entered the room, face apathetic, as he held up two baby bottles half-full with strawberry juice.

"Strawberry juice? Ushishishi…Getting girly?"  
"Lussuria was the one who made it."  
"Oh."

A moment of silence passed.

"What are you waiting for? Start bottle-feeding. You should feel honored because you are about to bottle-feed ro – "

Belphigor's sentence was cut short when Fran covered his and Tsuna's mouths with the rubber bottle tops. Tsuna could taste syrupy strawberries. And that was how Tsuna ended up hurt all over in the Varia's infirmary with Fran bottle-feeding both him and Belphigor strawberry juice.

––––––

"Reborn! Where is my Tenth? The Tenth needs me!"  
"No he doesn't. Now shut up or I'll bite you to death."  
"Kufufu…You are hiding him, aren't you? Smart Arcobaleno."  
"You three are wasting my time."  
"What were you doing to my Tenth, you lustf – "  
"What exactly were you doing to Tsunayoshi, hmm?"  
"It's private."  
"It's not private…it's _illegal!_"

It was wise of him to send Tsuna to the Varia Vaudeville, fully-aware that a conversation like this was unavoidable. These three would simply slow down Tsuna's recovery. The whole of Vongola Valleys needed him if they were to continue with their _little_ game of "Catch the Rabbit."

––––––

"Hwif pha bahah."  
"What was that, Bel-sempai?"  
"Ushishishi. There. Done."  
"I didn't quite get that, Bel-sempai."  
"I was asking you to lift the bottle so I could laugh. Ushi – "

Fran brought the bottle down Belphigor's mouth.

Tsuna could still taste the syrupy strawberries.

Coming Back Single and The Root of All Evil

**Liked it? The second half of the omake is for mogu95 because she's – or are you a he? – a B27 and F27 fan. I hope you like it, mogu95! We're clear on who the unnamed characters from the last chapter are, right? We are, right? Good, just making sure. Please leave me a review if you liked it and thanks for reading!**


	3. An Encore to Problems

**Forgive my vocabulary. Oh, and blame school.**

He Who Runs is Being Chased

_The Vongola cordially invites you to this year's event – a game to celebrate the Vongola Crown Sky Prince Sawada Tsunayoshi's belated coming-of-age. _

_The game will be hosted by the highly-acclaimed Vongola Chief Advisor, the Sun Arcobaleno Reborn. It shall begin at the hour of the dog two full moons away in the grand ball room of the Sky Palace and end two weeks after the mentioned date._

_Further instructions will be given on the day of the event._

_We will see you there!_

Tsuna stared at the Vongola seal stamped on the envelope in his hands with his mouth wide open. That letter meant trouble. Who knew just how many crazy, bloodthirsty brutes that equally crazy infant hitman could invite?

He hoped with all his heart that the invitees wouldn't come. His intuition had him glancing at the letter once more.

It said _'We WILL see you there!'. _What was up with that? Shouldn't it say '_We HOPE to see you there!'_?

Tsuna knew just what kind of crazy Reborn was. His kind of crazy bordered evil.

'Some kind of suspiciously terrible life-threatening tragedy will befall those who choose to ignore this invitation courtesy of the Sun Arcobaleno.' should have been added at the bottom of the letter.

Screw formalities.

Sighing, the cursed-to-be-doomed prince stands up to retrieve his X-Gloves and Hyper Dying Will pills from the back of his drawer where he keeps them.

–––––

Twas finally the last day of their two-week long 'Catch the Rabbit' game.

–––––

_Rule # 08 – Any damage dealt to any establishment must be kept to a minimum._

–––––

"VOI!"

All Varia heads turned to the bellowing captain.

"Stop fooling around, idiots! This is our last chance to get that kid! If we come back empty-handed, the damn boss will kill each and every one of us!"

"You are wrong Captain."  
"What was that Fran!"  
"If he kills _each and every one of us_, no one will cook for him."

The lower members of the Varia around the corner started peeking.

The Varia Prince stood up only to walk and sit back down again atop a rock with his legs crossed.

"Ushishishi. Just imagine the boss saying…"

Fran smirked and the prince was now dressed in Xanxus's clothing.

"…I want meat! Meat! Roasted lamb! I want it well-done!"

The Xanxus clone looked around indiscreetly. Then it stood up and walked to one of the fallen debris from the palace. It only took another miniscule movement of their illusionist's fingers to garb the Xanxus clone in the frilliest, pinkest, _scariest_ apron unknown to man. And clones. The debris turned into a stove and the Xanxus clone started cooking Levi's illusionary head.

"B-b-b-b-boss! Why is the boss cooking my head?"

The Varia members started laughing like madmen.

Belphigor's close-mouthed laugh resounded throughout the room. And that was when –

CRAAACK!

– the wall Belphigor was facing collapsed. Fran lost his focus and the Xanxus clone now had Belphigor's face and his boss's clothes.

"I came to see what was taking you trash so long."

The lower, more inexperienced members of the Varia promptly got heart attack. The Shark-Captain knew that some fights were not meant to be fought. He opened his hands in silent surrender, turned, and –

"RUN!"

Xanxus raises his guns as his subordinates scurry like the trash they are to him.

May their souls rest in peace.

–––––

Out of stamina, breath, and Hyper Dying Will Pills, Tsuna leapt from the second-storey terrace to avoid the –

BOOM!

There goes the Western Sky Tower.

–––––

_Rule #3 – Participants of the game are not allowed to bring and/or use any kind of weapon._

–––––

A pair of steel tonfas clash against the pointed ends of a trident as fruit and beast battle it out in a fight to the finish.

"Sawada Tsunayoshi _is_ mine."  
"Kufufu…You say that but…You haven't even seen him at least once the past thirteen days!"

Hibari snarled.

"After I finish you, I will look for the two hundred and eighty-nine herbivores that need to be bitten to death."  
"Such a lazy skylark, kufufu. Let's finish this. I need to kill eight hundred and twelve participants in the next five hours."

Mukuro laughed again and Hibari charged, knocking the former into the trunk of a nearby tree.

Before Mukuro could even out the score, Gokudera ran past him and his opponent, screaming.

"How many more, stupid cow?"

Gokudera halted to check his location, allowing the stupid cow to catch up with him. Lambo panted, glancing at his watch and his clipboard.

"You…have…about five more hours…and need…four hundred eighty-three more!"  
"What? That many more in such a short amount of time?"  
"That's because you wasted four days looking for the young Vongola, Stupidera."  
"Looking for the Tenth is never a waste of time!"

Gokudera swore, throwing his dynamites everywhere. Lambo followed the explosive example of his tutor. The place was covered in smoke. The two were gone as soon as they appeared. The smolder cleared and both Hibari and Mukuro jumped far and back, leaving their match in a stale-mate to strike terror in the hearts of those participants unlucky enough to have an encounter with them.

The crows flew and cawed.

The explosion decimated a portion of the castle wall. Nobody was there to see a corpse fall from the second floor due to the blast. Yamamoto jumped after the lifeless body. He swung his Shigure Kintoki to balance himself and landed on his feet and sword. The Crown Rain Prince bent over and poked the body lying on the concrete.

"Hmm…he's done already?"

A good thirty more corpses fell from the second floor. The natural born hitman scratched the back of his head as he counted the number of swordsmen he defeated in only twenty minutes.

"Twenty-eight…Twenty-nine…Thirty…Thirty-one. That means I need…a hundred and nine more!"

He nodded, as if resigning himself to his mission. Yamamoto entered through the destroyed wall and disappeared into the bloodshed.

Said wall completely crumbled a few seconds later and three boxers were hurled from inside the castle confines. The Crown Sun Prince stepped outside, stalking the unconscious boxers.

"A fight between true boxers TO THE EXTREME!"

Ryohei raised his fists. Fire burned in his eyes.

"JOIN THE BOXING CLUB!"

It's his way of saying, 'I don't know what just happened. Want to lead the training session with me and my Kangaryuu?'

One of the boxers groaned and dropped his head in pain. Ryohei mistook the act for nodding. He smiled broadly and picked up his new-found comrades.

"THE BOXING CLUB WELCOMES YOU TO THE EXTREME!"

Ryohei once again raised his fists. His gloves reflected the rays of the sun. Without the support of his grip, the new members of the Boxing Club collapsed. The Sun Prince looked them over.

"Stamina training? Just like the ones Master Collonello and I had?"

He nodded in approval.

"I HAVE TO RECRUIT MORE MEMBERS TO THE EXTREME!"

Ryohei dramatically jogs off in the direction of the not-yet-setting sun to bask in its glow.

"Look out!"

Tsuna tripped over the first two fighters, the last one cushioning his fall. Three winced in pain. Four heard the strong rumbling of footsteps. Only one knew what was happening.

"Quick! I think he went this way!"  
"No! Not there! I saw the Cloud and Mist demons right…"  
"Make haste!"  
"We have only five more hours!"  
"…there!"  
"GET HIM!"

The angry mob closed in on him. Tsuna lunged for safety. He held onto some sort of dent on the tree in front of him. The unseeing mass of sexually frustrated Mafioso continued marching on, apparently not noticing their target slip away into the forest before their very eyes.

–––––

_Rule #11a – Aim not for the kill._

–––––

The amateur hitman was slammed headfirst against the crumbling wall after receiving a direct hit from a metal tonfa to the side of his head. His allies had left him for their lives. The bleeding man, on the verge of death, snuck another peek at his attacker. The man with the pair of tonfas had gone as quietly as he had come. He closes his eyes, his boss' screams pierce his ears.

–––––

_Rule #11b – Corpses must be disposed of properly._

–––––

Tsuna stepped on the bodies scattered along the forest floor. His orange watch (Yes, they also have those.) beeped, informing him that yet another hour had passed. Tsuna pressed the orange leftmost button to stop the beeping. He was still safe, and he had to stay that way for the next four hours if he didn't want wedding bells to be ringing when he wakes up the next day. Fatigue caught up with him at last. Succumbing to sleep, Tsuna curled up at the base of a tree free from blood and mangled bodies. It wasn't a wise decision but his intuition was dulled by his lack of energy.

The shadow looms over his prize's lithe, sleeping figure, settling on what to do next.

–––––

_Rule #9 – Put the welfare of your boss and famiglia members above everything else._

–––––

"LEVI! Heads up!"

The assassin with the parabolas ducked behind a chunk of granite for cover.

"Thanks Bel-"

Before Levi could even finish uttering his thanks, the rock in front of him exploded. The Varia Officer of Lightning was blown away a good twenty-five to thirty feet in the air. The floor and roof of the Sky Palace's second floor was destroyed in the blast.

"Good one, Bel-sempai."  
"Ushishishi. Expect no less from the prince.

The exiled-prince-turned-mafioso and his froggy companion dodged another shot of compressed Flame of Rage flames.

A loud THUD signaled the end of Levi's twenty-five to thirty feet journey. He landed right next to the almost-lifeless Lussuria.

Two down, three more idiots to go.

"VOI! Damn boss, if you keep this up, none of us would get to catch that rabbit!"

Xanxus ignored his silver-haired right-hand man. Apparently, there was a reason he was blessed with Flames of _Rage_. Two more walls collapsed. The Sky Palace was seriously getting decimated and the Vongola's Varia Boss couldn't care less.

Squalo sidestepped. An inch or two of his flowing hair was cut.

"THAT'S IT!" He all but roared.

Belphigor whipped around, knocking Fran over. He lay down next to his frog. A hunk of rock-hard concrete flew over their heads.

"You got a good plan, Captain?"

Squalo charged at Xanxus with his sword.

"Get up, Fran, you have work to do." Belphigor whispered.  
"You too?"

Belphigor nodded.

"Oh. And I thought I was the only one who thinks it is suicide."

Fran got on his knees. The first thing he saw was a mass of silver hitting the ground. The Great Silver Shark had fallen. Squalo tumbled his unconscious way next to Levi. Belphigor and Fran gulped at the same time. No way in hell were they going to be added to that pile of inert bodies!

Three down, two more idiots to go.

Xanxus located the two idiots, hiding and motionless due to fear. He smirked, pulling the trigger. The explosion rocked the whole palace. The Varia Boss's smirk grew more pronounced. He strode down the impassable corridor to his right and disappeared.

"A simple thank-you would do, Bel-sempai."

Fran offered Belphigor his hand. The latter kicked the former behind the knees.

"I'll thank you when we have the rabbit and the boss is begging us for it, _on his knees._"

Fran, apathetic as if nothing had happened, followed Belphigor's lead.

–––––

Reborn placed his reward on the only undamaged bed in the only undamaged bedroom in the totally damaged castle. Reborn left to check on the other contestants right after planting a chaste kiss on Tsuna's cheek.

–––––

"_All contestants please proceed to the lobby. All contestants please proceed to the lobby." _

The speakers hidden in the different areas of the entire kingdom blared.

He was not to be reminded like some weak herbivore.

Hibari waited for the other contestants to show up. He sat, cross-legged on the lobby sofa, just like he would were he at home in his beloved Namimori Reception Room. Hibari closed his eyes. Suspiciously, Tsuna disappeared four hours ago. None of the hitmen Hibari came across knew where Tsuna was. Hibari was irked about the lack of information. He was relaxing in the lobby, the only place without herbivores. Nothing went as planned. Sure, he was able to defeat the required number of herbivores but somewhere along the way, when he wasn't looking, his prize suddenly vanished. Now, Hibari was reduced to waiting. He vowed to more than beat the living daylights out of whoever comes in through those double doors with Tsuna, _his_ Tsuna, in tow.

–––––

"_All contestants please proceed to the lobby."_

"Three…Four…Five! That's the last one, Stupidera!"

Lambo drew a huge check mark on his clipboard in red marker. Gokudera was unbelievably giddy, like a child about to receive the most expensive gift for Christmas.

"Let's go, Lambo! It's almost eight o' clock!"

Gokudera was bursting with excitement.

Lambo sighed.

–––––

"…_contestants please proceed to the lobby."_

Yamamoto finished the due with a mere flick of his Shigure Kintoki.

"Eight o'clock already?" He asked no one in particular.

"I better get going. Good thing I finished just in time!"

The swordsman chuckled to himself.

–––––

"…_please proceed to the lobby."_

An unsatisfied, evil glint appeared in Mukuro's eyes.

"Kufufu…I must go now."

He gave them a knowing nod.

"Yes, Mukuro-sama. We shall take care of this business without delay." The Kokuyo Gang answered in chorus.

–––––

"…_proceed to the lobby."_

Ryohei's head shot up.

"WHAT? PROCEED TO THE LOBBY? ARE ALL THE OTHER BOXERS THERE?"

His opponents, wanting to be freed from further pain, nodded solemnly.

"PROCEEDING TO THE LOBBY TO THE EXTREME!"

The Extreme Prince started jogging towards the lobby and was soon out of their lines of sight. They sighed in relief.

–––––

"…_to the lobby."_

Tsuna woke up with a start, his horrible wedding dream all but forgotten. _To the lobby? To the lobby_ what? No way in hell was he going anywhere! All those crazy, barbaric hitmen looking for him, sniffing him out like guard dogs! Tsuna noticed his beeping orange watch.

_8:05 PM?_

He pressed the orange leftmost button to stop the beeping. He had been asleep for only _four_ hours? Four hours wasn't going to get him anywhere. He needed more than a whole week and a half's worth of sleep. It was past eight, no one had caught him, the game, the deal, everything was off. And he was off the hook. These things in mind, Tsuna slid under the mattresses to get some more dozes of Vitamin Z. That was when he noticed he was no longer in the forest. He was on a bed. In a bedroom. His intuition was telling him that something was wrong. Had he been captured? But it was past eight! He wasn't being forced to sign wedding papers.

His eyelids felt unsurprisingly heavy. No use thinking with a fried brain.

Tsuna drifted off into a dreamless sleep, putting all his worries past him.

–––––

Leon poised himself on his master's fingers. Reborn fired the neon green cannon at the double doors to shut the princes up. The hitmen in the lobby were making too much noise. When the smoke thinned, Reborn could make out the outline of a person standing on the other side of the door. Who? A hitman who survived his own crazy hitmen, perhaps? The smoke cleared, and the gaping hole revealed a messenger in shock.

"Message...for the…Arcobaleno…Reborn." The messenger's voice cracked.

He was holding a crumpled piece of paper. He held it out to Reborn. After the Arcobaleno took it, the messenger hurriedly excused himself. He undid the creases and started reading the only sentence on the document. There were a few drops of blood on it. Reborn was aghast. His poker face, however, looked the same. He too, like the messenger, excused himself hurriedly. The wedding can wait, especially when there was another horse in the running.

–––––

Reborn didn't knock. He didn't have to.

"Tsuna."

The boy stirred but did not wake up.

"No-good Tsuna."

Tsuna sat up although his eyes remained close.

"Wake up. It's time to don the wedding gown."

The magic words jolted Tsuna right out of his sleep.

"I AM NOT GOING TO WEAR THAT FILTHY GOWN!" He shrieked then pounced on Reborn.

Reborn caught both his wrists. He pinned the prince, who was still fuzzy from sleep, under him on the mattresses. Tsuna didn't struggle. He merely closed his eyes, wanting sleep to overtake him. Reborn tightened the grip on his wrists. The prince glared accusingly at him.

"What do you want, Reborn?" He sounded irate.

Reborn let go of Tsuna and rolled off to his side.

"The Marshmallow Monster has been sighted…_within_ the Vongola Valleys."

Tsuna's blood ran cold; his eyes were as wide as saucers.

He was wrong.

The game was not yet over; on the contrary, it was just beginning.

**OMAKE **– Of Silver-haired Right-hand Men

"Five thousand, nine hundred and twenty-seven, Reborn!"  
"Wait, it's eight thousand and twenty-seven, I'm tellin' you!"  
"Eight thousand and twenty-seven?"  
"Kufufu. Arcobaleno, it is six thousand, nine hundred and twenty-seven."  
"I wasn't asking you, Mukuro."  
"Yes, shut up herbivores. Clearly, it's one thousand, eight hundred and twenty-seven."  
"One thousand, eight hundred and twenty-seven."  
"Right."  
"Wrong!"  
"Make up your mind, mafioso."

Reborn sighed. Dealing with these lunatics was giving him a headache. They wouldn't stop shouting numbers that ended in twenty-seven. Obsessed stalkers! It's not like it's his fault he didn't have a number! He was perfectly fine with his letter.

"…twenty-seven!"  
"…twenty-seven!"  
"…twenty-seven!"  
"…twenty-seven."

The Vongola Princes were the only ones who made it to the lobby.

The double doors abruptly opened. Squalo was on his knees, lurching forward. He landed flat on his face.

Reborn forgot all about the Vongola's vaudeville, the hidden assassination squad, Varia.

"Ushishishi. The prince has arrived."

The Arcobaleno sighed. Great. More lunatics.

Belphigor stepped on his Captain. Then, his smile turned upside-down.

"You said the Vongola Prince would be here, Bel-sempai."

Fran entered the room, dragging both Lussuria and Levi by the hair. Upon passing by, the illusionist started yanking Squalo around the room to the chairs also by the hair. Belphigor shoved Reborn out of his way to sit on the 'throne' at the front.

"Where's the bunny?" The prince asked.

Reborn was wise to ignore him.

"The…bu…nny…is…the Varia's!" Squalo breathed into the blood-stained Persian rugs of the lobby.

The Arcobaleno gave them a curious look. What had happened to the assassins the Vongola was so proud of? They looked like somebody had beaten the bloody hell out of them.

"What happened to _them_?"

Belphigor merely shrugged.

"What happened to _whom_?"

Squalo staggered on his feet like a drunken man. He drew his sword and started slashing at air.

"What happened to your Captain?"  
"_Who_ happened to our Captain. Don't worry about him. The Boss just damaged his pride as a man."

Squalo was not a happy man.

"Damaged? My pride? As a man? I was damaged nothing!"  
"I see his brain was damaged as well."

The Varia Captain impaled the mahogany desk in front of him. All Gokudera could see was silver.

"Damn it, you bastard! That's the Tenth's desk!"  
"VOI! He deserves it! That cowardly weakling!"  
"You-!"

The silver-haired right-hand men engaged in battle. The others couldn't care less.

–––––

Tsuna closed his eyes, not wanting to see anymore. He longed for the human warmth he felt lingering on his cheek during his sleep. The floor was littered with dead bodies. The walls were crumbling. His royal palace was _in ruins_! He walked on, not knowing where he was going.

–––––

"Stop it, Gokudera! You're destroying the lobby! Squalo, you stop too!"  
"FIGHT TO THE EXTREME!"  
"Believe me, Arcobaleno, it's six thousand, nine hundred and twenty-seven."  
"Wanna make a bet, Bel-sempai?"

The lobby was, more or less, in pieces.

Squalo sliced the top off of Gokudera's latest batch of Rocket Bombs.

"That's it, to hell with you!"

The invisible timer on the grenades reached zero.

KA –

–––––

– BOOM!

Tsuna couldn't hear himself shriek. Heck, he couldn't hear himself think! For a moment, he lost all his senses. It was deafening. And _it_ came from the lobby. The little rabbit hopped, corridor after corridor. He should've listened to his intuition.

–––––

What now? Xanxus was momentarily stunned.

_Proceed to the lobby._

He wasn't one to listen to instructions, but something told the Varia Boss that the one thing he wanted to see would be there. And there he would go.

–––––

"Arara, you've finally done it, Stupidera! Oh boy, the young Vongola'd be furious!"  
"Sh-sh-shut up!"  
"The cow's right. Hide."  
"No, don't. Tsuna's out of Hyper Dying Will Pills."  
"Oh? Lucky bastard."  
"Good job, Captain!"  
"Yeah, good job. Real, good job. High-five?"

Gokudera was sweating bullets like crazy. Squalo was triumphantly raising his sword here and there like he'd won.

"What… in the name of the Vongola happened here... Reborn?"

Gokudera gulped.

Uh-oh. Here comes the boss.

"Don't ask me. Ask your silver-haired right-hand man."

Squalo gulped.

Uh-oh. Here comes _his_ boss.

"Good idea. What happened here, trash?"

Leon transformed into Reborn's neon green cell phone.

"Damn boss! Where were you? You think you have the right…"  
"I'M SORRY, BOSS! I didn't mean to! It was his…"  
"…to act all high-and-mighty? What were you doing…"  
"…doing! He started it! He destroyed your mahogany desk! I couldn't…"  
"…these past few hours? You lazy, damn boss!"  
"…leave it alone! I'm sorry!"

Reborn speed-dialed three. Then, he jumped out the window. Hibari did he same. Mukuro vanished into thin air. Yamamoto and Lambo went after Ryohei.

"Fran, I think you need to do it again."  
"Yes, Bel-sempai."

Lussuria and Levi groaned.

The person on the other line answered.

"_Varia Infirmary. How may we help you?"_

Out of earshot of anybody else, Reborn responded.

Back in the lobby, Xanxus had decided that he had heard enough.

"Shut up, trash."  
"What!"

Tsuna motioned to Gokudera with his hands.

"Forgive me, Boss!"  
"Gokudera, let's get out of here."  
"Anything you say, Boss!"

Before the boss and his right-hand man could move a muscle, Xanxus pulled the trigger.

–––––

"Have it credited under the Sawada Family's bank account."  
"Yes, sir! Thank you and have a good day!"

Reborn smiled politely.

–––––

"I'M SO SORRY, BOSS!"  
"Give it a rest, Gokudera-kun."  
"So – "  
"He said give it a rest, damn it! Are you deaf?"  
"You give it a rest! It's your fault we're here in the first place!"  
"Shut your traps, trash."

The door opened.

"You need somethin', Boss?"  
"Get out before I kill you."  
"Oh, oh, look! Squ-chan looks so adorable with those bandages wrapped around his face!"  
"I'm going to wrap _you_ in these bandages until you suffocate and die."

The Varia immediately left .

–––––

"Where is he?"  
"Tsuna's still recuperating."  
"_Where_?"  
"In the Varia Infirmary."  
"Wise choice, Arcobaleno. Kufufu."

Reborn smirked. Of course, there had to be a reason he was considered the strongest Arcobaleno after all.

He Who Runs is Being Chased

**Is it just me, or are the omakes getting longer? What? Do you like it that way? I hope this chapter wasn't boring. Reviews keep the next chapters coming. Oh, and does Marshmallow Monster sound lame? I think it sounds cute! Not to mention appropriate. **


	4. Jealousy Knows My Name

**Remember this? No? Well… blame the delay on the lazy plot bunnies! Curse you, plot bunnies!  
(Special thanks to my 18****th**** reviewer **_**captivated fairy**_** because 18 is my favorite number. And Hibari is my favorite character.)**

**The previous chapters are so much better than this. I'm sorry!**

The Calm Before the Storm

"Reborn… I don't feel comfortable with this idea."

Tsuna shifted around under the blankets.

"_Nobody_ feels comfortable with this idea."

The room's clock struck a quarter after three in the morning. Both tutor and student stayed up all night thinking of the best solution to their problem. It was Reborn who suggested enlisting the help of the Varia assassins.

_Help? From the Varia assassins? _

Tsuna did not even pause to think when he downright rejected Reborn's proposal. Reborn did not even think about pausing when he insisted on his plan.

Before they could start arguing, fatigue caught up with Tsuna.

"Reborn… I'm tired."

Yawning cutely, Tsuna closed his eyes and snuggled closer to his tutor.

"Then sleep."

Reborn smiled. He wrapped an arm around his student's waist and pulled him closer. A look of pure bliss was sketched on his face as he ran his fingers through his student's messy cinnamon locks.

–––––

"Tenth! Where are you, Tenth? Tenth!"

Gokudera tore through the castle like a storm. His screams were heard by no one. Upon arriving at the off-limits Vongola basement, he stopped shouting like crazy. The first door was red. He skipped it, knowing fully-well that it was his room and beyond the door lay all his extremely DANGERous explosives. He stopped in front of the locked second door. Gokudera impatiently rapped his knuckles on the poor piece of furniture.

–––––

Pure irritation was written in red ink all over Reborn's face.

Gokudera gulped.

"Uh…What… are you doing here…R-reborn-san? Umm… H-have you seen the Tenth?"

Reborn stepped into the hallway. He locked the door behind him.

"Tsuna… is asleep."  
"Asleep! Where?"  
"In my room. Don't bother him."  
"_Your room?_ Where's your room, Reborn-san? Is th-"  
"_Don't bother him."_

Something about the way Reborn told – no, _ordered_ – him to not bother the Tenth made Gokudera shut up. The pissed Arcobaleno led him away from the basement.

"Are you done making the final preparations for summoning the Varia?"  
"Well… yes – I mean no. Kinda, I think."  
"What are their demands?"

Gokudera swallowed.

–––––

"They want _complete rule over the lesser kingdoms_?"

Reborn glared at the scroll in his hands.

" Well… that's all they want."  
" '_The lesser kingdoms.' _So, the Sky Kingdom's not included?"  
"Kufufu… Apparently, the Monkey King knows better than to push his luck."  
"But still… I mean, _complete rule over the lesser kingdoms_?"  
"For two months. _For two months._"  
"What if something TO THE EXTREME happens in two months?"

Silence fell upon the Guardians.

"That's what you get for depending on herbivores, _herbivores_."

Reborn did not stop Hibari when he stood up to leave. The Cloud Guardian-less Varia didn't interest Hibari. Right now, he only wanted to look for his missing Sky. Even Gokudera had no knowledge of Tsuna's whereabouts.

_Reborn's room. Where is Reborn's room?_

Only Iemitsu knew where in the six hells Reborn's room could possibly be.

But Hibari didn't need Iemitsu. He only needed his tonfas.

–––––

BAM! BAM!

The sound of steel against firm wood awoke the sleeping Sky prince. Tsuna sat up. He covered his ears with his hands and closed his eyes. Confusion clouded his head.

_What's happening?_

Tsuna opened his eyes but all he could see were gray clouds. The silence was deafening. He couldn't hear a thing. Then, the Sky prince realized that the room next to Reborn's had just exploded. The wall connecting the rooms crumbled to dust. When the smoke cleared, Tsuna found himself face-to-face with a smirking Hibari.

–––––

"Hey, the explosion came from the basement!"  
"Kufufu… I know that, Gokudera Hayato."  
"Then why're you headin' for the lobby! Are you an idiot?"  
"Idiot? Did you see the look on the Arcobaleno's face? Didn't you feel his aura?"  
"Reborn-san? Aura? What are you talking about!"  
"We'll see who the real idiot is… Kufufu."

Mukuro, as usual, vanished into thin air. Gokudera cursed under his breath. He grabbed Lambo by the wrist when he passed by and stopped him.

"Reborn-san… He was pissed, wasn't he?"

Lambo shuddered.

"Yeah. Like, real scary. He had this scary, dark aura all around him… His eyes were scary too!"

When Lambo started motioning with his hands Gokudera couldn't help but smile. It was as if the Guardian he was talking with was the five-year old Lambo and not the fifteen-year old one.

"Hey, Lambo, Gokudera! Hurry up!"

Yamamoto obviously did not notice that Mukuro was missing.

The Thunder and Storm Guardians exchanged looks.

_No turning back now. Unfortunately, Mukuro's right. _

–––––

"Reborn! You didn't have to do that!"  
"Didn't have to do _what_?"  
"You didn't have to injure Hi-"  
"I'm not injured."  
"-bari-san! He's hurt, Re-"  
"I told you, herbivore. I'm not hurt."  
"He isn't."  
"-born!"

The three-way conversation seriously wasn't working.

Hibari was covered in cuts and bruises. Yamamoto had escaped with Ryohei and Lambo. Gokudera, however, _refused to leave his Tenth behind_ and got blasted off to Mukuro-knows-where in the middle of the fight.

Just then, Mukuro appeared.

"Kufufu… Tsunayoshi... Come with me… Let's leave this two behind!"

Speak of the indifferent illusionist.

"No. Mukuro-san, please go away."

Hibari and Reborn just had to smirk at the rejection.

Mukuro noticed the position Tsuna and Hibari were in. He paled.

Tsuna was sitting between Hibari's legs with the back of his head resting on the taller male's chest. Hibari's arms were wrapped possessively around Tsuna's delicate frame. Apparently, Reborn would only stop attacking Hibari if Tsuna was in the way.

"W-what kind of irritating and jealousy-inducing illusion is this, Arcobaleno?"  
"Sadly, this is no illusion, Mukuro. You know that better than anyone."

Reborn frowned. Mukuro continued glaring. Hibari smirked.

Tsuna sighed. What was up with his Guardians and Chief Advisor these days?

"Tsuna. We don't have the time for this. Come with me."

Reborn disappeared into the ruin that was the Vongola basement.

The prince in question cringed upon hearing the same words Mukuro used come from his tutor's mouth. Tsuna went after Reborn, leaving Hibari staring longingly at him.

Mukuro chuckled at the adorable kicked-puppy look on Hibari's face. Sometimes he wished Reborn wouldn't abuse his authority to steal Tsuna from them so much.

–––––

"Where are we, Reborn?"

The night had fallen. Reborn led Tsuna to a seemingly unoccupied carnival tent.

"Fran! Go get the door!"  
"I don't want to, Bel-sempai."

The Sky prince squeaked. If _Bel-sempai _and _Fran_ were here then here would be the Vaudeville, the Varia's hideout! Tsuna hid behind Reborn.

"VOI! So the Vongola brat finally came!"  
"Quiet, Squ! You're frightening him."  
"I'll go call the boss!"  
"No, don't do that, Levi. He doesn't want to see you."

The man named Levi looked like he was about to cry.

"Froggy, go call the boss."  
"Yes, Bel-sempai."

Unsurprisingly, the Varia assassins looked scary and had Tsuna shaking in his orange sneakers. Surprisingly, though, they actually looked more like street performers and less like assassins. No wonder Iemitsu had a vaudeville built to hide them. The interior of the vaudeville, however, would pass as the interior of a castle.

The _colorful_ man named Lussuria had them stay in the dining room.

"So the trash came to dinner, huh?"

Tsuna recognized the angry tone of the rough voice. He made a beeline for the door but Reborn was holding his hand and running was impossible.

"Still a coward, I see."

The Varia boss sat at the table with them.

"Good evening, Xanxus."  
"X-x-x-xanxus!"

The higher Varia members, the assassins, took their assigned seats on the table. Tsuna was surprised to know that the Varia assassins could actually keep their mouths shut.

"We have come to discuss your demands."  
"_Complete rule over the lesser kingdoms for two months_."

Tsuna took comfort in knowing that the Varia assassins were secretly just as scared of the sight of _Xanxus and Reborn sitting at a table together and discussing matters in a calm and civilized manner_ as he was.

_This isn't going to end well._

-––––

It was about a quarter after three in the morning. Tsuna couldn't sleep. He was lying in a bed somewhere far from the Varia vaudeville, taking pride in the knowledge that, as always, his intuition was correct. Tsuna tried to recall the scene before he passed out. He remembered the fire caused by Xanxus's Flames of Rage consuming the carnival tent. He remembered Reborn picking him up in a lover's carry before they jumped out of the window and into the forest to get as far away from the carnival tent as possible. He remembered signing the contract with the Varia.

He remembered the words on the contract.

_Complete rule not surpassing that of the Vongola Princes on the lesser kingdoms for a month. _

Even the Varia boss couldn't leave a scratch on the Strongest Arcobaleno.

Tsuna smiled when he heard Reborn snoring softly as he slept on the couch.

He was sure that things were bound to get more complicated now that the Varia had come into the picture.

_But that's okay! Reborn'd take care of me, I'm sure of it!_

–––––

"What! The Tenth disappeared again? Are you kidding me?"  
"No. I'm serious."

Gokudera bawled in frustration. Lambo patted his back in an attempt to comfort him.

Moments later, Gokudera was, once more, tearing through the castle like a storm.

–––––

"Tsunayoshi has gone missing… again."

Mukuro. The bearer of bad news.

Hibari's eyes widened.

"The Chief Advisor is missing too."

Hibari's eyes narrowed.

_That infant…_

–––––

"S-sempai… What do you think… have we been doing… these past few hours?"  
"We're looking for Sawada TO THE EXTREME!"  
"I heard he went missing again."  
"Oh, Lambo! When did you get back?"  
"Doesn't matter. Reborn and Tsuna are missing."  
"Missing TO THE EXTREME!"  
"Y-y-you don't get it, Sempai! I think we're missing something here!"  
"Yes! We're missing Tsuna and Reborn!"  
"That's not it! _We're_ _missing_ _something_! Like you know in baseball…"  
"Yare, yare…"

**OMAKE **– Of Indifferent Illusionists

The basement was, like the rest of the castle, in pieces.

When chunks of metal started flying, Tsuna ducked. Without his Hyper Dying Will pills and gloves, he was just as helpless as his right-hand man who had forgotten his bombs in the lobby and was apologizing profusely for his _carelessness._

"I'm sorry, Tenth! If I had only remembered my bombs…"

Tsuna was too busy dodging and ducking and tugging at Gokudera's sleeve to listen to what the latter was saying.

"…we'd be outta here already!"

The boss and his right-hand man kept running.

–––––

"Give it up, Hibari. _He's _mine and you know it."  
"No."

Reborn was sure that were he and Hibari not rivals, they'd get along great.

He pulled the trigger. The shot of Sun flames destroyed another wall. To avoid the impact, the skylark jumped back. Hibari prepared for another attack but he found himself distracted by the sweet voice calling out to him.

"Hibari-san! Hibari-san!"

Hibari smiled. For a moment, he forgot all about Reborn and the crumbling basement surrounding him.

"Hey, you bastard! The Tenth is calling you! Are you deaf?"

No wonder Hibari hated these herbivores.

He turned around, swung his tonfa at the insensitive jerk, and made a grab for Tsuna. The unsuspecting prince squealed in surprise.

"Hii! H-hibari-san! W-what are you-"  
"Hn."  
"But Gokudera-kun and Yamamoto-kun are still-"  
"Don't worry."

Tsuna wasn't worried. For some reason, he always felt secure and safe with his Cloud Guardian around. Tsuna wondered if it was because of the other's strength. He was too naïve to know why.

Gokudera seized the collar of Hibari's suit before the skylark could _take flight._

"Bastard! Where are you taking the Tenth?"

Tsuna's eyes were apologetic.

"G-gokudera-kun! I'm sorry!"  
"Oh, don't worry about me, Tenth!"

Hibari leapt. And just like that, he and Tsuna were gone.

And Reborn was still firing his damned sun flames.

Gokudera cursed.

–––––

"What-"

Gokudera stooped low behind a wooden cabinet. A metal chair flew over his head.

"- are you doing here?"

Mukuro sliced the other unidentified flying objects to pieces with his trident.

"I'm looking for my Tsunayoshi."  
"He's-" Gokudera was out of breath. "- not yours!"  
"Where is my Tsunayoshi?"  
"Like I said…"

Mukuro tensed due to the hostile presence he felt.

"…he's not yours!"

Fran appeared before the two of them. Moments of silence passed. Seconds later, Mukuro and Gokudera saw Reborn's neon green gun resting at the back of the Varia illusionist's head.

Fran faded into the creeping haze.

"Where are you?" Mukuro asked the mist engulfing them.  
"Over here."

The Varia's illusionist emerged from the building fog.

"Kufufu. Are you really here?"  
"…"

Gokudera was speechless.

_He's… Fran?_

"What does the Varia want?"

Mukuro knew that Reborn was not feeling as calm as he looks.

"Nothing really. The boss is just getting impatient."  
"Xanxus?"  
"Yes. The boss wants to know when he'll be seeing the Vongola."  
"Tonight. We'll drop by tonight."  
"Oh. Okay."

Fran's face was blank when he disappeared for the last time.

Mukuro spun around to look at Reborn.

"Kufufu. You know he's not here, right?"  
"Of course."  
"What are you going to do now?"  
"Take back what's mine."  
"He's not yours, Arcobaleno."

With that Mukuro disappeared too.

Gokudera limped away.

Leon transformed to a cell phone.

"Varia Infirmary? Yes, it's the Sun Arcobaleno. Can you pick up someone for me?"

He listened to the receptionist on the other line.

"A silver-haired Italian at the Vongola basement…"

–––––

"Who are you and what are you doing here?"  
"I'm injured. This is an infirmary. And they call you _their_ genius?"

Belphigor flinched. Then he snarled.

"_I _am a _prince._"  
"Whatever."

Gokudera wasn't enjoying his time at the Varia Infirmary. He was worried sick about his Tenth and the Varia's knife-bastard just won't leave him alone.

"Kufufu… Gokudera Hayato… I hope that you're ready to admit that you're an idiot."

To make matters worse, Mukuro'd occasionally visit him to gloat.

"Get the hell out of here."

Belphigor and Mukuro exchanged looks.

"Kufufu."  
"Ushishishi."  
"Kufufu."  
"Ushishishi."

The door opened. In came Fran holding a tray with two glasses of juice. He looked at Mukuro, face devoid of any emotion.

"Kufufu. I see you brought me some juice."  
"No. I'd rather throw these away than give it to you."

Sometimes, when Gokudera was extremely unlucky, Fran would be there when Mukuro was visiting. Then he'd be treated to a whole day of _illusions _that are too real for his own good. Belphigor would simply sit down and keep laughing. Closing his eyes was never enough. Gokudera often lost his senses and couldn't tell up from down when the illusionists were lost in their battle of illusionary worlds and monsters.

_Who sent me here anyway? _

Gokudera wondered.

–––––

"U-um… Hibari-san? Where are we?"

As expected, HIbari's castle outside of Cloud Kingdom was situated away from the civilization and crowds.

"Namimori."  
"N-namimori. That Namimori? Ehh?"

_Namimori? As in Namimori, castle of the Cloud? But we're in the middle of a forest!_

The master of the castle stopped walking.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt, herbivore?"

Hibari inspected Tsuna's arms for wounds while kneeling on one knee.

His little acts of _kindness_ were confusing Tsuna.

"N-no."

Hibari placed his _boss_ on the king-sized bed in his room.

"Get some rest."  
"I'm not tired."

With a glare, the prefect had coerced the prince into submission.

"Hii! Alright! Alright! I'm going to sleep!"

Tsuna scampered to the middle of the bed on all fours. He got under the blankets and made himself comfortable. Within seconds, he was fast asleep.

Hibari lay beside Tsuna, his mind going over the events of the day. He placed a hand on the brunette's head and stroked the soft brown locks.

Reborn will surely pay him a visit sooner or later.

–––––

Reborn's resolve was stronger than ever. He was _definitely _going to send Hibari to the Varia Infirmary next.

The Calm Before the Storm

**Hey, thanks for reading! Spare me a minute and leave me a review, please? If the three-way conversations are seriously not working, please tell me! Criticisms are welcome. Oh but, I might not be able to reply so, thank you in advance!**


	5. Interlude

**To those who are wondering when the OMAKEs take place: they can happen **_**anytime**_**. Hell yeah! **

**(Special thanks to my 27****th**** reviewer **_**ezcap1st **_**because 1827 is love. But D18's my OTP.)**

Unwelcome Visitor, Unexpected Help

"Yamamoto-kun, we have to do something about the alarming increase of murder attempts the transfer citizens of the Rain are making on Squalo."

The Vongola Guardians, minus Hibari and Mukuro, were holding a meeting under the shade of a _narra_ tree in the Sky Garden.

"Yamamoto-kun, are you listening?"

Jirou barked twice. Lambo disappeared into the ruins of the castle.

"Huh? Oh yeah, Tsuna."  
"Alright," Tsuna's voice took on a more formal tone. " We can say for sure that Squalo's alive and well, seeing as how he continues to _spam_ us with videos of how he destroys the towns in the Rain looking for _him._ Since he's alive and well, surely his opponents aren't."

Lambo reappeared holding a box of video tapes in one hand and a thick folder in the other.

"Hospital records also show a distressing boost to the number of confinements in transfer citizens due to serious impalling."

The guardians passed the folder around.

"If we don't do anything about this, Squalo'll send each and every Rain transfer citizen he crosses paths with to the morgue! Or worse…" Tsuna cowered in his chair, hands covering his head in a fetal position. "… News about the lack of discipline will reach Hibari-san and he'll bite us all to death!"

Lambo cringed. Yamamoto smiled nervously. Ryohei had a hard time understanding Tsuna's speculations.

"May I ask, Tsuna? Where did all those transfer citizens come from?"  
"Uh, let's see… eighty-five percent are from the kingdom of the Storm."

Gokudera's face turned red. Stuttering, he tried to apologize to his Boss.

"T-tenth! I-I am really ashamed of my citizens' actions! I shall take responsibility for them! I'm really sorry, Boss!"

His forehead and hands met the ground. Tsuna just laughed to dismiss the idea of his brash right-hand man taking responsibility for the murder attempts. Gokudera's involvement would probably cost them more lives.

His guardians were being uncharacteristically quiet and Tsuna could not help but feel the gravity of the problem they were confronting.

Moments of silence passed. It was not Lambo who broke the quiet to complain saying he was bored and hungry. It was Ryohei,

"Don't worry, Tsuna! If we do our best and work together TO THE EXTREME, we'll surely find _Byakuran_!"

–––––

Byakuran aka Marshmallow Monster. The purple-eyed, white-haired leader of the Millefiore Mountains, armed with the smile of the Cheshire Cat and a seemingly endless supply of marshmallows. He is also the proud owner of the well-known flower shop Seven Funeral Wreaths, run by his subordinates. With Kikyo as the manager, Zakuro behind the cash register and Torikabuto changing the motif of the store's design every season, the shop has been ever so successful at selling its famous undead regenerating Daisies and Bluebells with stems that turn to water.

The white Millefiore Mountain is called Melone Base, home to the White Spells adept at magic. The black Millefiore Mountain is named after the famiglia it originally belonged to, the Giglio Nero, which is home to the Black spells proficient at combat. One must pass through the Gates of Gesso to get to Melone Base.

Second-in-command to Byakuran is the Giglio Nero's Boss, the Sky Arcobaleno Uni.

Tsuna's head swirled with the information on the man with the foxy smile. He left his guardians to get some rest in the lobby.

–––––

How Tsuna woke up with _that_ man's arm around his waist on the plush lobby sofa, even Reborn didn't know.

Letting his reflexes take over, Tsuna swiftly kicked the older man square in the gut. Byaakuran fell off the sofa and landed on the tattered carpet with a thud and an "Ouch!" Tsuna's fighting stance was perfect. He was poised and ready for action. But when Byakuran smiled at him, Tsuna freaked out and ran in the direction of the forest, screaming, much to the former's pleasure.

A bespectacled redhead walked over to Byakuran and helped him up.

"Byakuran-san! You didn't have to scare him like that!"  
"I merely smiled at him, Sho-chan."

The redhead sat down.

"I can't believe that the boss of the Vongola family would run off screaming like that."  
"He's too adorable, isn't he, Sho-chan?"

Shouichi Irie, engineer to the Millefiore famiglia remained silent.

–––––

Moments later, Gokudera arrived, armed with his dynamites and foul mouth. With him were the other guardians who were also carrying weapons.

"Byakuran, you bastard! Whaddaya want?"

Byakuran beamed at him. "I just want to play. That's all."  
"Play? Whaddaya mean, play?"  
"This little game of yours… Catch the Rabbit, wasn't it? I wish to participate."

Tsuna cringed behind Yamamoto. Reborn finally spoke up.

"I regret to inform you that we have ceased playing Catch the Rabbit days ago."  
"Oh? But no one's won yet, right?"  
"Two weeks was up."

Byakuran turned to his companion.

"I guess getting past security took us quite some time, Sho-chan."  
"It seems so, Byakuran-san."

The Arcobaleno narrowed his eyes. The man in front of him was, without doubt, too dangerous to be left unsupervised.

An urgent knock on the double doors snapped Reborn out of his thoughts. A messenger quickly entered to report in a loud voice,

"Boss, the other kingdoms have been taken over by the coup d' etat."  
"What," Tsuna almost fainted. "What coup d' etat?"  
"The one led by the Varia, Boss!"

Tsuna was almost in tears.

The messenger excused himself.

Byakuran seized the opportunity.

"If we manage to put a stop to this coup d' etat, will you let us play?"

There was debate in Reborn's mind.

"A week. We'll give you a week."

A look of triumph, as if he'd already won, crossed Byakuran's features.

"That's great! Sho-chan, call the Seven Funeral Wreaths."  
"Yes, Byakuran-san."

Tsuna felt sick.

**OMAKE – **Of Black-Haired Right-Hand Men

Dino of the Cavallone Cave, which is famous for raising fine horses, arrived with Romario and a dozen subordinates, looking worried like hell.

–––––

"Bucking Horse Dino! How are you?"  
"Oh! If it isn't Smokin' Bomb Gokudera Hayato! How's the Poison Scorpion?"

And Gokudera was out like a light. Dino chuckled.

Yamamoto entered through the hole in the wall.

"Dino-san? I think Tsuna's in the observation room."  
"I'll go check up on him then.

–––––

Tsuna's eyes were set in a far-away gaze. He was looking beyond the clouds that dotted the sky.

"Tsuna? H-how are you?"

The prince in question didn't spare him even a glance.

"I'm…" He sighed, "…single."  
"You're… what?

Dino burst out in laughter. A blush dusted Tsuna's cheeks a light pink.

"What! What did I say?"

Before Dino could answer, Romario entered the room without knocking.

"B-boss! Bad news!" Romario's voice was panicked.  
"Calm down, Romario. What's wrong?"  
"Bad news is on its way, Boss!"

Tsuna's orange phone rang.

"_Hello Kusakabe-san?"  
"Bad news, Tsuna."  
"What is it?"  
"Kyou-san's on his way. There."_

And then Tsuna was panicking like Romario.

–––––

"Kusakabe Tetsuya. Who were you talking to on your phone?"  
"No one, Kyou-san."  
"Do not lie to me, Kusakabe Tetsuya."

Kusakabe gulped.

–––––

"W-w-what! Kyouya's coming here? Here!"

And then Dino was panicking like Tsuna and Romario.

–––––

"B-bastard! What're you doin' here!"

Gokudera knew that Hibari wasn't the type to visit for a cup of tea.

"Where is Sawada Tsunayoshi?"

–––––

Tsuna led them to a hiding place after he gathered his wits.

"Tsuna! Are you sure he won't find us here?"  
"I'm not really sure, Dino-san. For all I know, Hibari-san hasn't been here yet."

Dino settled for a nap. He placed his head on Tsuna's lap and was in the process of dozing off when Hibari _unexpectedly_ found them.

Both Tsuna and Dino shrieked and ran for the door.

"So the Bronco's here."

Tonfas appeared on either hands of Hibari. The light glinting on the cold metal made it look more menacing.

"Now, now, Kyouya, I'm not here for a fight."

Hbari's eyes narrowed when Dino brought his hands up.

"I'm here to visit my little brother!"

The Cloud prince noticed his boss trembling behind Dino.

"That reminds me, Sawada Tsunayoshi. There has been an intolerable lack of discipline ever since you assigned the Varia to the kingdoms."

Tsuna and Dino exchanged looks. Before Hibari could strike, Dino was off, running for the door with Tsuna in his arms.

"Herbivores must be punished."

Tsuna was frightened half to death when he looked back and saw Hibari hot on their heels. Because Romario and Kusakabe were running behind Hibari, it looked like they were playing some sort of tag.

–––––

"Dino-san! That's a–"

The Cavallone boss's body collided with a wall. Tsuna was, fortunately, able to jump down before the impact.

Dino's eyes were completely swapped out.

Tsuna opted for calling help.

–––––

After sprinting down two hallways, Tsuna heard what he guessed was old men's conversation coming from one of the open rooms. He decided to stop a little to rest. And eavesdrop.

"_Do you remember the young Prince Dino's seventh birthday?"_

The voice was Romario's. Tsuna didn't hear it often so he was positive it was Dino's black-haired right-hand man.

"_No. Not really…"_

It seems that Romario's companion at the moment was Kusakabe.

"_Well, Prince Hibari Kyouya walked out the moment he saw the crowd."  
"What happened?"  
"Prince Dino tried to stop him but Prince Kyouya got upset and knocked him out in two strikes!"  
"That… really happened?"  
"Yes. In front of hundreds and hundreds of nobles."_

The room echoed with their booming laughter. Tsuna giggled.

Out of nowhere, Gokudera materialized. He sat down beside Tsuna.

"Tenth! We were successful in driving Hibari away."

Tsuna was half startled and half relieved.

Apparently, Hibari simply walked out of the door the moment Mukuro appeared in all his _"Kufufu"_ glory.

Tsuna almost forgot Dino. He burst into the room.

"Romario-san! Dino-san's hurt!"

Romario stood up so abruptly, he knocked the coffee table over.

"WHAT! Where is he?"

–––––

After the incident, they called the Varia Infirmary to pick up Dino. Romario and Kusakabe tagged along. They said that they _'wanted to keep Prince Dino company'._

–––––

"What happened next?"  
"Well, Prince Dino was hospitalized! Prince Kyouya's parents forced him to visit Prince Dino everyday."  
"Everyday? Kyou-san was able to stomach that?"  
"Prince Kyouya brought flowers and baskets of fresh fruits but he wouldn't talk to Prince Dino."

Dino grunted.

"He talked to me, you know!"

Romario and Kusakabe both snickered.

"Romario-san, let me guess. Kyou-san said something like _herbivore, weak_ and _pathetic_, right?"  
"Yes! He used to say _'How pathetic. Get well soon, weak herbivore'_ before he left."

Dino groaned. He closed his eyes.

"Romario, please stop talking about my childhood…" He whined.

Unwelcome Visitor, Unexpected Help

**Hey there! Leave me a review, will you? Pretty please? Criticisms are welcome. I'm planning to update again before or on Christmas. Or in the first few days of January.**


	6. Seven Days

**Sorry for the incredibly are-you-even-going-to-continue-this long wait. I take responsibility for all the OOCness which is due to my eight months without Reborn!. I'll bet my whole stash of yaoi you've all forgotten what was happening. Oh but, I tried to fix my habit of jumping-from-scene-to-scene. So here it is, the sixth chapter of FTverVDecEd.**

**Thanks to ezcap1st, Kichou and Kiseki no Tenshi. And Yukirin-sama, they're still in that maybe-kinda-sorta-development stage.**

Fine Men Did Exist

(Recap: The Millefiore offer their help to stop the coup d' etat of the Varia.)

The chiming of bells alerted the Funeral Wreaths of the fact that someone had just made the mistake of entering their overly-grandiose flower shop.

"O-ho. Welcome to the Funeral Wreaths," Kikyo declared. "You shall not leave without a purchase."

He turned his gaze away from the Bluebell he was tending to and took a good look at the woman who entered – and was wearing a White Spell uniform.

"I'm Iris Hepburn," she said. "I bring a message from Byakuran-sama."

She handed Kikyo, who had a curious look on his face, a scroll and turned for the doors. Before she could leave, however, Kikyo called out to her.

"Wait! You shall _not_ leave without a purchase!"

The doors were then blocked by his Nuvola Velociraptors.

Iris sighed.

Once again, the Funeral Wreaths triumphed in selling their products.

–––––

"_A week, we'll give you a week."_

And 'their' week began.

–––––

As thanks for accepting their help, the Funeral Wreaths dropped by the Sky castle and gave Tsuna their best-grown undead Daisy and aquatic Bluebell, which the Sky Prince did his best to graciously refuse to no avail.

Kikyo then gathered the Millefiore troops and deployed them.

After that, the Funeral Wreaths proceeded to dawdle in the lounge with their boss, who had a blanket over his shoulders and was eating marshmallows peacefully.

Tsuna could only gape at them.

–––––

The second day had passed and the third was coming to an end but the Wreaths were still idling in Tsuna's lounge.

Just as Tsuna was losing his patience that evening, a bleeding and heavily-injured woman came stumbling through one of the damaged walls.

"Iris-chan," Byakuran greeted. "What's wrong?"

'_What's wrong?' _Tsuna thought. _'She's half-dead and he's asking her what's wrong!'_

"Byakuran-sama," the woman managed a bow with much difficulty. "I regret to inform you that we cannot handle the Varia on our own."

"Hm. Gather the remaining men and retreat. Have the other Wreaths cover you."

'_Other Wreaths?' _Tsuna wanted to voice his question but felt that it'd be unwise to ask.

Byakuran dismissed Iris. The injured woman ignored Tsuna's offer of treatment and stumbled as she disappeared into the forest.

"Kikyo-chan," Byakuran said, snapping Tsuna's attention back to him. "What do you wish to do?"

"We can attack now, Byakuran-sama."

The Millefiore boss smiled. "Nah, let's rest for the night. Who wants marshmallow?"

Tsuna felt like pulling his hair out.

–––––

Byakuran and the Wreaths left on the fourth day and Tsuna was so relieved, he finally remembered Reborn asking him to call _four days ago._

"The evacuation's going well, Tsuna." Reborn said, answering on the first ring.

The Sun Arcobaleno was with Dino, who upon hearing of their situation, promised to shelter the Vongola citizens. Reborn and the guardians, minus Hibari and Mukuro, escorted the citizens to Cavallone Caves and stayed there to tighten security while the Cloud and Mist guardians remained in their kingdoms and continued instilling fear and pain (but mostly pain) in the hearts of Varia members.

"That's good," Tsuna sighed, "but what about the Varia?"

"I'm not sure. Stay in the palace," Reborn sounded worried. "I'll come get you."

And he hung up.

–––––

"Bel-senpai, Bel-senpai, there's a red-haired guy flying towards us." Fran hollered in his monotonous voice as he stared out the Storm castle's window.

"What are you talking about, Froggy? If this is another one of your illusions…" Belphegor gazed out the window and, recognizing the red-haired man, made a face. "Go tell Boss the real enemy has arrived."

Fran only shrugged as he made his way to the basement.

–––––

Squalo had just sliced a wine glass headed for the general vicinity of his head in half when the door to the basement opened.

"Boss, Bel-senpai says the real enemy has arrived," Fran said, ignoring Squalo's indignant yells about his hair.

"Tell that fag to set the plan in motion."

Fran nodded and Xanxus took this as his cue to resume throwing filled wine glasses at Squalo's head.

–––––

"Levi, dear! Fran called!" Lussuria sang as he jumped down from his hiding spot up on the tree.

"Shut up and start walking, Lussuria!" Levi scolded. "The brat's going to hear you!"

"That's silly. We're a kingdom away and you think he's going to _hear _me?"

Levi didn't respond. This was his chance to prove himself to his boss and he wasn't going to blow it by letting Lussuria _blow it._

–––––

Hibari's smirk didn't falter even once on his journey to the Sky palace. If anything, it grew more pronounced as he smashed skulls and cracked ribs with his tonfas.

As the Sky castle and two Varia guardians came into view, Hibari's smirk turned predatory.

–––––

Tsuna gasped as Lussuria entered the lounge through the wall. He stood up to run away but noticed the older man's injuries.

"Tsuna-chan, it's horrible," Lussuria drawled. " Xanxus and the others…they're planning… a coup d'etat!"

_What? _In his surprise, Tsuna ceased all movement and Lussuria took this a good sign.

"I…I can't believe they'd d-do this," he sobbed.

Tsuna looked convinced and Lussuria mentally complimented himself for being such a good actor.

"I'm s-sorry I couldn't stop t-them…" He continued, noting the change of emotions that freely showed on the young boss's face.

"Lussuria-san, how badly are you injured?" Tsuna asked, genuinely concerned.

"Darling, don't worry about me! The Varia set up base in the Storm castle. Stop them, please!"

Tsuna nodded, swallowed an HDW pill and was flying before Lussuria could urge him to hurry.

Outside of the castle and surrounded by hundreds of Varia men including Levi, Hibari scowled as he watched a familiar trail of orange flames soar across the sky.

–––––

"Bel-senpai, Bel-senpai, why does he have a box in his chest?"

Belphegor frowned. The Millefiore had arrived to regain control of the kingdoms and the Varia were fighting them off but even with the help of Fran's illusions, things were not going well.

"Idjit, Torikabuto, what're you doing here!" Zakuro stopped attacking Belphegor and Fran to point an accusing finger at a moth-like creature flying his way. "Boss told you to retrieve the Sun kingdom, didn't he!"

Belphegor scanned the skies and noticed flickers of orange flames.

'_That brat… We can't let the Millefiore see him!' _With that thought in mind, Belphegor had Fran create illusions of them fleeing into the woods to lure the Funeral Wreaths away from the Storm Castle.

Belphegor knew that if he and Fran messed up here, they would never see their true goal come to completion. _He _was their goal. He was the only reason they followed the Vongola; he was the cause of their coup d'etat….

… and _he_ was finally here.

The genius grinned.

–––––

Tsuna's hyper intuition was screaming at him to turn back. _Turn back_, it ordered. _Turn back. _Tsuna wanted to, he really did, he wanted to return to his castle and wait for Reborn but he couldn't. He had to stop relying on his guardians, had to prove his worth as a Boss.

With a flashy X-Burner Air, Tsuna blew away a good portion of the Storm castle roof to make his entrance. He touched down on the now-unrecognizable second floor decorated with unmoving bodies, rubble and holes.

"Come out already," Tsuna sighed. He could feel another presence within fifty meters but couldn't tell whose it was. His senses were dulling, he knew. But why?

Out of nowhere, a green-haired teen Tsuna identified as the Varia illusionist appeared.

"We're kidnapping you," the teen deadpanned.

Tsuna realized he was weakening. His eyes couldn't focus; his knees were wobbling. "Where's Xanxus?" He asked. The teen merely stared at him. Alarmed, the Decimo went for a retreat.

In a split second, Belphegor, hidden and sensing the Decimo's intention to escape, had Tsuna pinned, dazed, against the floor.

"Good work, Froggy. I wonder how you stand that sleeping gas though," with ease, Belphegor hauled Tsuna onto his shoulders and motioning for Fran to follow, headed for the basement.

–––––

Squalo was still screaming bloody murder about his hair when Belphegor dumped Tsuna onto Xanxus's lap. Xanxus, after readjusting Tsuna to a more comfortable sitting position, smirked.

"Contact Lussuria nd Levi. Tell them to meet us in the Vaudeville tent." The Boss ordered no one in particular. Fran however nodded and Belphegor snickered as Squalo secured an escape route.

–––––

Lussuria giggled. And giggled. And giggled some more.

"Oooh, I did it!" He sang. "Boss would be so proud!"

In Lussuria's estimate, a good thirty minutes had already passed since the Vongola Boss's departure but he didn't feel like leaving the castle yet. What he felt like was celebrating. Celebrating, baby!

"Finally! I did something right!" Lussuria put a finger to his cheek and pouted as a ring from his phone interrupted his dance mid-twirl.

"_Lussuria."_

"What is it, Fran? I'm a little busy here."

"_Head to the Vaudeville tent."_

"What?" Lussuria stopped dancing. "But Levi isn't back yet!"

"_I don't think Boss cares. Captain's still securing an escape route. In thirty minutes, we leave."_

Fran hung up. Lussuria paled, not liking the prospect of leaving a comrade behind. Fortunately, he was saved from the trouble of deciding between leaving Levi and waiting for him. Unfortunately, it was due to a tonfa being smashed against his skull.

Hibari watched Lussuria's body fall to the ground with a smirk on his face. After making sure the man, like his companion, wouldn't wake up anytime soon, he left for the Vaudeville tent.

–––––

"Damn it! Where're Lussuria and Levi?" Squalo growled.

"Ushishishi, should we leave him?"

"That's not very nice of you, Bel-senpai."

A few more minutes passed before Xanxus finally stepped out of the helicopter parked behind the Vaudeville tent. "Where's the trash?" He snarled.

"They aren't coming." A new, familiar yet unrecognizable voice answered.

Xanxus and the others turned around to see the figure of a smirking Rokudo Mukuro partly shrouded in mist.

"Kufufu, surprised?"

Immediately, Xanxus drew his gun and fired Flames of Wrath aimed at Mukuro who disappeared before getting hit. Mukuro reappeared near the helicopter's entrance, smirk in place, and hurried inside.

Xanxus cursed.

The sound of the copter roaring to life with the entrance open snapped the Varia out of their trance.

"VOI! Someone do _something_!" Squalo barked as he dashed for the copter.

Xanxus aimed his gun.

"Don't! You might hit him!" Squalo warned.

"Don't order me around, trash," Xanxus growled. A clanking sound was heard when his gun was knocked out of his hand by someone. With a snarl, Xanxus sent his unknown attacker a kick and scowled when it was blocked. A hit forced him to turn and he finally recognized his assailant.

Hibari Kyouya.

"I'll bite you to death, herbivore."

"Let's see you try, trash."

Belphegor grimaced upon seeing the Cloud Guardian and his boss engaged in a fight. Squalo was duking it out with Mukuro inside the copter while Fran was being kept busy by Mukuro's illusion-clones. Belphegor sighed and climbed onboard the copter which rocked back and forth with every released blow. He spotted Tsuna, curled up and asleep in a corner. Quickly, he scooped the boy into his arms and hurried out of the copter. Belphegor didn't get very far though for Tsuna woke up and, with a yelp, slapped him across the face.

"Tsunayoshi," Mukuro called from inside the copter. "I hear you're awake."

Tsuna looked around, confusion evident in his features. "H-Hibari-san? Mukuro?"

"Brat! Why'd you wake up _now _of all times, damn it!" Belphegor cursed as he chased the startled Tsuna around the space behind the Vaudeville tent.

"_You were kidnapping me!" _The Decimo squawked while evading Belphegor's grabbing hands.

Tsuna shook his pockets for HDW pills and found none. When Belphegor almost grabbed _a particularly sensitive spot_, Tsuna shrieked. _"DON'T TOUCH ME!"_

That got everyone's attention.

Mukuro was out of the copter in an instant, more of his illusion-clones appearing to cover his back. He blocked Belphegor's knives with his trident and slammed its butt on the genius's temple. "Come, Tsunayoshi." Mukuro, holding Tsuna in a lovers' carry, said before he utilized his Malocchio Hell Ring to generate blast after blast of Mist flames to prevent the Varia from pursuing them.

Hibari scowled as Xanxus lost his cool and started firing his flames _everywhere. _Even the Vaudeville tent was destroyed. After he finished the last Mukuro illusion-clone, Squalo fled to the forest. Belphegor and Fran followed suit; all three running from their own boss. Hibari went after the two whom, after losing to him, _begged_ to be taken in. Apparently, they were more scared of their boss than their enemy.

Hibari led them to the Sky castle where they waited for the Sky prince.

–––––

"Tsunayoshi, why don't we just run away from all this and start over, hm? What do you say?"

"Um, no."

Mukuro sighed. He got rejected thirty-two times in less than thirty minutes. What was worse was that, although he slowed down because he liked having Tsuna in his arms, they still reached the Sky castle within an hour.

He opted for not announcing their arrival at the castle, surprising – and irritating – Hibari when he walked in with Tsuna still in his arms.

"Where's Reborn?" Mukuro asked, not wanting to miss this chance to make the Arcobaleno jealous.

"I'm here, Mukuro. Put Tsuna down," a cold, menacing voice from behind Mukuro replied.

Reborn, Mukuro noticed, was radiating I'mma-kill-you vibes so, hesitantly, he complied.

"Hibari, Mukuro watch those two," Reborn ordered, referring to Belphegor who was watching with unconcealed interest and the bored Fran. He then motioned to Tsuna and told the young boss to follow him. The two disappeared to the basement.

The Vongola guardians – and Belphegor – scowled.

–––––

Once they reached the safety of his room, Reborn lightly slapped his student.

"I told you to stay. _I told you to stay._" He said, eyes narrowing as Tsuna whimpered.

"I-I know Reborn but… Look, I-I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry." Tears were starting to form at the corner of Tsuna's eyes. "I didn't wa – "

Tsuna softly yelped when his tutor drew him into a tight hug.

"I was… scared when I heard you...disappeared. No, I…" Reborn sounded worried. "Are you hurt? Anywhere?"

The surprise passed and Tsuna returned the warm hug with enthusiasm. "No, I'm fine. I'm sorry, Reborn."

"It's alright. Get some rest." With that, Reborn carried Tsuna to his bed and tucked him in. He gingerly kissed Tsuna on the forehead and bade him goodnight.

The young boss instantly fell asleep.

–––––

Tsuna awoke the next day to the sound of obscenities being screamed and 'Shut up's being roared.

Cautiously, he made his way to the lounge and was greeted by the (unpleasant) sight of the Varia all tied up separately and bickering with the Millefiore. Hibari was standing at the farthest corner, looking like he was wishing he was anywhere but there. Mukuro was present and occasionally would join their little game of Who-can-insult-the-other-creatively-the-most. Seated on the couch, Reborn's eyes roamed the room.

"Tsunayoshi," Mukuro announced his arrival with a warning smile. "You're awake."

Reborn rose from his seat. "Just on time. We were about to decide on something important."

All the Mafioso, even Squalo, quieted down.

"What do we do with them?" Reborn asked, referring to the punishment to be dealt to the Varia. When Tsuna didn't respond, he continued speaking. "Should we kill them?" At this, the smile on Belphegor's face disappeared; Squalo gulped audibly; Lussuria started begging for mercy; and Fran looked completely…bored.

"We can't do that, Reborn!" Tsuna replied, voice rising. "They're our friends!"

Xanxus snorted and Reborn was tempted to shoot him.

"What do we do then?" The Arcobaleno prodded. "We can't let them out of our sight because they're still a threat but you don't want to kill them."

"Let's keep them here." Tsuna half-heartedly suggested. Honestly, he didn't know what to do.

Mukuro chuckled. "Kufufu, like house pets? Brilliant idea, Tsunayoshi."

The indignant protests of the Varia ("VOI! We're not _house pets!"_) fell on deaf ears.

Byakuran smiled and clapped his hands. "It's like a big slumber party in a hunted house!" He chirped. "I'll bring the marshmallows!"

It was decided.

And that was how Sawada Tsunayoshi, Crown Prince of the Sky Kingdom, nineteen years of age, currently single, unwed and a virgin, got stuck in a dilapidated castle with the Millefiore, the Varia, his Cloud and Mist Guardians and Reborn.

**OMAKE – **Of Undead Daisies and Aquatic Bluebells

"Tsuna-kun!" Lussuria yelled, worry and distress evident in his voice. "Your uh, plant-thingy jumped from the _rooftop_!"

"He's fine!" Tsuna called back from inside the castle. Really, those plants were more trouble than they're worth.

"But Tsuna-kun, he isn't moving!"

"_He's fine!"_

Tsuna sighed. A shout of "I _CAN'T _DIE!" was heard seconds later.

"Kufufu, you look tired Tsunayoshi. Why don't we – "

"Go away, Mukuro."

Dejected, Mukuro slinked away. Byakuran chose that moment to appear and play Mindfreak with him.

"How many marshmallows do you think I can fit inside my mouth, hm, Tsu-chan? How many?"

"Once you start choking, I'll count, Byakuran-san."

Before Byakuran could respond, he walked away to tell the undead Daisy to stop jumping from the rooftop only to find the zombie being stabbed repeatedly by Belphegor.

He walked some more and stumbled upon Fran and Torikabuto trying to outdo each other's illusions.

Zakuro had dug up a hot spring next to the tree where Levi and Kikyo would often brag to each other about their respective bosses.

It was mostly peaceful. _Mostly_. Unfortunately for Tsuna, Xanxus and Hibari seemed to unite in their goal to reduce-everything-to-nothing. Reborn became handy whenever the two got out of hand.

Tsuna was startled by a sudden wetness spreading from his ankles to around his knees. He looked down and almost fainted at the sight of water covering _the ground _and rapidly rising_._ Not a patch of land could be seen anywhere.

And then there was the aquatic Bluebell.

Tsuna swallowed a pill and flew around. He spotted Bluebell in a clearing drowning Daisy. Daisy resurfaced moments later and there was another whine of "I _CAN'T_ DIE!"

"Bluebell, please uh, remove this water." Tsuna subtly pleaded. "Now."

Bluebell smiled and complied then dragged Daisy towards who-wants-to-know-where. The ground was land again.

Tsuna touched down; there was a distinctly loud sound of boulders being smashed; a moan of "_I CAN'T DIE!" _and an angry scream of "Look what you did to my hot spring, _idjit_!"

He shook his pockets and sighed, sensing an oncoming headache. Where were those painkillers when you needed them?

Fine Men Did Exist

**Romance. Fight scenes. I suck at both. So I, uh…you know, yeah. Yay. Thanks for reading. I'd freakin' appreciate it if you sent me some constructive criticism though. Don't worry about having to sound 'nice', yeah, flame me. Like if you're removing this from Story Alert, tell me why. Like, what I should improve on and what I did wrong and all that stuff. Yeah. Plain fan-girl/boy-ing and squee-ing is good too. Thanks again!**


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